Golden State Warriors

83

Final Recap | Box Score

109

Houston Rockets

	David Lee, PF 33 MIN | 6-14 FG | 0-0 FT | 5 REB | 1 AST | 12 PTS | -20 Lee took some ill-advised shots and also had trouble converting at the basket as the Rockets routinely met him there and made his shots difficult. The Florida product failed to impose himself on the glass and his teammates followed suit as they were dominated on the boards tonight.
	Dorell Wright, SF 19 MIN | 3-6 FG | 0-0 FT | 2 REB | 2 AST | 8 PTS | -17 Dorell’s night can be summed up as such: the 2011-12 regular season. A couple of 3-pointers, and little else from the Warriors starting forward.
	Jeremy Tyler, F 12 MIN | 0-2 FG | 0-0 FT | 4 REB | 0 AST | 0 PTS | -14 Jeremy Tyler did not get much time on the floor but also left much to be desired on the interior and thus saw some of his minutes go to Dominic McGuire, as Mark Jackson looked for a semblance of interior defense and some toughness.
	Nate Robinson, PG 28 MIN | 3-10 FG | 4-4 FT | 2 REB | 2 AST | 11 PTS | -20 Nate Robinson had a forgettable night and yet still had the most memorable play of the game: a borderline dirty hit on a breakaway lay up that prompted the Houston announcers to refer to the New Orleans Saints’ bounty scandal. Nate was called for a flagrant 1 foul.
	Klay Thompson, G 28 MIN | 4-11 FG | 2-2 FT | 1 REB | 3 AST | 10 PTS | -19 Klay struggled for most of the night to get quality looks and also had trouble converting when he finally was able to go get good opportunities to shoot the ball.

Three Things We Saw

1. The Warriors weak side defense was non-existent for most of the night as the Rockets kept moving the ball and cutting on the strong side and then reversing course and throwing it to the weak side for wide open looks from midrange and at the basket.
2. Golden State’s zone defense looked completely clueless, especially in the third quarter as players struggled to identify their assignments and gave up open looks both from long-range and from inside the paint.
3. The offense struggled to make shots in the second half as Houston forced Warriors players towards Dalembert who challenged shots at the rim and forced misses. Also, Golden State was far too reliant on isolation basketball to sustain any semblance of a good offense throughout the game.

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Quick clip here. Stephen Curry was somewhat of a bystander (3-10, 8 assists) as Nate Robinson ran point against the Blazers. Since Curry can certainly produce as an off-guard sniper, I wondered after which role he preferred, and if he had a preference at all.

Something to note going forward, in terms of future possible GSW moves: Curry prefers PG.

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The faint musk of Warriors optimism is in the air. Winners of three straight, (finally) conquerers of a Suns team that’s a “who’s who” of “where’s he been these past few years?” GSW is not quite in legitimate playoff contention yet, but they are reaping the recent benefits of a helpful bench.

“Bench” is obviously lower status than “starter,” so it is incumbent on young backups to improve. With that in mind, how are Ekpe Udoh and Brandon Rush progressing and what’s the plan going forward? After the Suns game, I opened it up with yet another attempt at getting Udoh to break his impassive deflection of credit:

ESS: I’ve got a stat, it’s  kind of complicated, I read it to Mark Jackson.

Udoh: Uh-oh.

ESS: Every player with a better plus-minus rating than you plays for Chicago, Dallas, Miami, OKC, Philadelphia, or the San Antonio Spurs. All really good teams. What do you make of that stat?

Udoh: I don’t know, I just go out there and play my game…

Rush (interjecting): Good stat though!

Udoh: Just go out and play hard, bring the energy off the bench, defense, blocking shots.

ESS: You hit some mid range jumpers, what do you think is more important for your offensive game, hitting mid range jumpers or a post game?

Udoh: It’d be hitting mid range jumpers. Hitting mid range jumpers, having everybody come out to me, driving lanes for our other guards.

ESS: So that’s because the pick and pop game enables more spacing?

Udoh: Ya. Especially in the NBA, because you can’t help as much.

This is a key distinction. If Udoh gets a better mid range shot, he can better help his teammates. If Udoh gets a better post game, he can merely hit more shots in the post. Skinny Ekpe will likely never be a great post player worthy of a double team. If he starts hitting shots on the low block, it will not change the spacing of an opposing defense. But if he starts converting catch and shoot opportunities? Well, then opposing defenses won’t chase Curry and Ellis with reckless abandon on pick and rolls. Opposing defenses will also have to account for him when Curry and Ellis drive to the hoop.

He’s a long way from publicly displaying facility with either aspect of offense, though Mark Jackson believes Udoh has “both” skillsets. I often see Ekpe practicing low block moves in shootaround, but the full practice scope is hidden. So I asked after the distribution of labor between mid-range and post. Which does he work on more?

Udoh: Fifteen footer now. Been working hard in practice with the assistant, getting better at it.

(I turn to Brandon Rush) 

ESS: Do you think that you’re playing better now than you were with the Pacers?

Rush: Ya, I think I’m playing a lot better because I feel like I’m a lot freer. We got a lot more guys that are playmakers on this team and there’s been easy looks for me all the time from them. Been shooting pretty good from the three point line.

ESS: Is it just that, or did you improve anything in your game?

Rush: I’ve still been working on the same thing I need to be working on, which is ball handling, shooting the mid range shot when I get into the lane. So that’s the whole thing I’ve been working on all Summer.

It seems that Brandon Rush has read his Hollinger scouting report, which includes, “lousy handle” and “no in between game” as knocks amid some praise for Brandon’s defense and deep shooting.

ESS: Who would you comp your game to? I kind of think of Arron Afflalo, as somebody who hits the three or drives to the bucket. 

Rush: Ya, that’d be a good comparison. And he just got paid too (laughs).

ESS: Do you think that bodes well for you? Lockdown defender, not a high usage guy?

Rush: Ya, you don’t have to run any plays for me. I just go out there and make things happen. 

…

Tangential note, but credit to Steve Berman for catching it. Nate Robinson is LOUD. This quality is not so much annoying as it is impressive. I’ve already had two interviews interrupted by what Nate Robinson was saying all the way from the shower/bathroom area. If you tossed a chemical beaker up in the air, Nate could probably shatter it before the ground could.

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Robinson. Thompson. Rush. McGuire. Udoh.

Like the snobbiest of Bulls fans, the “bench mob” is my favorite part of the game. You see, the GSW Russian Matryoshka doll has a soft Ellis-Curry-Wright-Lee-Biedrins exterior that hides this scrappy, hardened second unit. It’s always a fun, shocking contrast, to behold the secret defensive layer.

After so many years of seeing absolutely no defensive facet from Golden State teams, I savor this morsel of staunch like it’s my death row meal. The Warriors are still subpar defensively, but at least the subs aren’t.

The backups are killing plus-minus to the degree that it’s become a running Kawakami trope. While it is easy to dismiss their effectiveness as, “it’s against the second string offense,” I’ve seen Scott Skiles make the playoffs with similarly ugly lineups. The current bench mob will make 10.3 million dollars this year and David Lee will make 11 million. With that in mind, I’m not even sure the Warriors want to consider a possibility that this crew can out-perform expensive first string talent–especially since this is such an ugly band of ducklings.

Some benches are blessed with, “Man, they could start for so many NBA teams.” Not this one. These guys lack the offensive skill to start for even mediocre NBA squads. They are flawed players who don’t compensate for each others’ weaknesses so much as they amplify each others’ defensive strength in the aggregate. And a chid-sized man shall lead them.

Nate Robinson, reckless game manager

Ironically, the defensive bench mob is commanded by a defensive liability. Nate Robinson isn’t even a perfect one-way offensive force, as his heedless gunning can destroy the flow of an offensively able unit. Thankfully for him, the other four guys just aren’t so able. Rush and Thompson can hit threes, but they can’t reliably create shots anymore than I could turn my fingers into oragami cranes. If Nate can find them on a drive and kick, great. If not, Robinson is blessed to take whatever dumb shot he desires, as such an option is certainly preferable to whatever mischief Udoh and McGuire might get themselves into with a basketball.

In football, a defensive minded team will often employ a mediocre “game manager” quarterback whose raison d’etre is risk aversion. Alex Smith is free to throw 3rd down bounce passes, so long as he doesn’t toss interceptions. It’s okay, if he can just manage a field goal or two, the defense has Smith’s back (bizarre special teams turnovers not withstanding).

Basketball is apparently different, because “Better Judgment” is terrible at guarding Nate. The little man chucks more than woodchucks who work under the paradigm of chucking wood. There is risk aversion in his strategy though, because Nate only averages 1.6 turnovers–as though Robinson’s tunnel vision allows him to paradoxically, recklessly play within himself. Take a dumb shot before it becomes a dumber turnover, I suppose. Right now Nate has a better turnover rate than any GSW starter save for Dorell Wright.

Of course, the unit’s strength is defined by the defensive prowess of Udoh, Rush, and McGuire, probably in that order. But they would have a hard time outscoring opposition without their volume scorer. Nate is just enough individual offense to allow collective defensive triumph.

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Golden State Warriors

90

Final Recap | Box Score

97

Los Angeles Lakers

	David Lee, PF 37 MIN | 6-11 FG | 3-4 FT | 11 REB | 0 AST | 15 PTS | -3 Lee was opportunistic on offense; finishing at the rim off of passes from Monta and also with a couple of put backs. On defense, he did a decent job of battling Gasol for post position and not conceding too many easy attempts to the Spaniard.
	Dorell Wright, SF 24 MIN | 4-8 FG | 0-0 FT | 3 REB | 1 AST | 10 PTS | -2 Dorell had the unenviable task of guarding Kobe early and often in the game and it was obvious that the Black Mamba was going to have a field day against the Warriors starting small forward. Nonetheless, Wright finally showed some signs of life, scoring 10 points in the second half against the Lakers.
	Kwame Brown, C 34 MIN | 6-13 FG | 1-4 FT | 6 REB | 2 AST | 13 PTS | -11 Kwame’s defense was largely responsible for Andrew Bynum’s poor shooting night. The Warriors big man prevented the Lakers center from getting his usual deep position, which in turn meant Bynum had to shoot the ball from further than accustomed.
	Monta Ellis, SG 39 MIN | 8-20 FG | 2-5 FT | 3 REB | 10 AST | 18 PTS | -7 Monta became hot for a stretch in the second quarter as he started to put up points in a variety ways. Once his jumper started to betray him in the third quarter, Ellis became a playmaker and repeatedly set the table up for Kwame and David Lee to keep the Warriors in the game.
	Charles Jenkins, G 10 MIN | 1-2 FG | 0-0 FT | 1 REB | 0 AST | 2 PTS | -5 Jenkins was mostly ineffective during this game and saw most of his minutes during the game go to Nate Robinson.

Three Things We Saw

1. The Nate Robinson era has officially begun and it had some mixed results. Robinson got himself on the scoreboard early and was aggressive in getting in the lane and converting shots. Mind you, every made shot gave Nate added confidence, which in turn led to him taking some questionable shot attempts later in the game.
2. Mark Jackson had his team play zone in the second quarter and it helped keep the Lakers out of the lane and also forced some turnovers. The Warriors held out in the second half and only used the zone on a few quick possessions. In addition, the strategy helped force the ball out of Kobe’s hands. One can only wonder why the Dubs didn’t go to it a little more often, especially in the third quarter when Bryant had smoke coming out of his ears.
3. Klay Thompson not only looked confident against the Lakers, but he looked like the shooter that the Warriors thought they were drafting when they acquired him in June. The rookie showed the ability to set up his defenders and create some separation coming off screens as well as the confidence and skill to catch, shoot and connect from the field.

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By: Jordan Ramirez

Remember Nate Robinson?

Robinson played for the New York Knicks and made a name for himself by winning three NBA slam dunk contests at only 5’9’. Robinson was a fan favorite in New York, not only because of his height but because of his sparkplug play coming off the bench. Providing quick offense, and not afraid to put up a shot, Nate was in the good graces of many fans but eventually fell out of grace with management.

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